M-68 work to halt for the holiday travelers

Road work on the reconstruction of a stretch of M-68 near Indian River will be suspended for the Fourth of July holiday period.

By Shawna Jankoviakshawna@cheboygantribune.com

Road work on the reconstruction of a stretch of M-68 near Indian River will be suspended for the Fourth of July holiday period.Beginning at 3 p.m. today, the project will be one of 118 road jobs statewide that will be temporarily discontinued until 6 a.m. on Monday to help make travel easier for the estimated 1.4 million Michigan residents that AAA Michigan says will be traveling this holiday weekend.“MDOT knows the Fourth of July is a great time of year for motorists from all over to enjoy Pure Michigan,” said State Transportation Director Kirk T. Steudle. “While most MDOT work zones will be inactive for the holiday, there are still areas that must have lane restrictions kept in place. We urge all motorists to drive with caution through work zones. Be sure to plan ahead, buckle up, and put the cell phone away while driving so everyone gets to their destination — and back home — safely.”Although MDOT is suspending as much work as possible, there will be 44 work zones that will have active lane restrictions in place, although none are in Cheboygan County.The section of M-68 just outside of Indian River from King Road to Old US-27 that is undergoing work will be open in both directions for the holiday weekend, as well as the M-68 bridge deck over the Crooked River in Emmet County. The roadwork on both projects is expected to be completed in July. Traffic has been flagged during the M-68 road reconstruction project with some delays for motorists, and a detour has been used for the bridge work. The M-68 roadwork includes minor widening, drainage improvements and guardrail work in addition to reconstruction.Bob Felt of the Michigan Department of Transportation has said the bridge is approximately a $1 million project and the road will cost around $3 million to complete.Motorists statewide are also are encouraged to regularly check MDOT's popular Mi Drive traffic Web site (www.michigan.gov/drive) for traffic incident alerts, live traffic Web cams, and additional construction information.